Data from National Health and Examination Survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tell us that obesity has reached staggering proportions in the United States, affecting one in three adults and 17 percent of children and adolescents.

Think "caloric density" as an alternative to thinking in terms of portion size. We’re told to imagine an ideal “portion” as being about the size of a pack of cards. But most of us snarf that much during tasting – before we even get to the actual meal!